School Access Strategy

Identification cards for students, faculty, staff and visitors increase the visibility of individuals who do not belong in the school building and make the facility safer for all who use it.

Crime Problem Addressed — This strategy focuses on increasing the visibility of trespassers, intruders and suspended or expelled students through identification cards for students, staff, faculty and visitors. An identification card system, particularly when combined with access control procedures, deters individuals with no legitimate business in the school from attempting to enter the building and reduces opportunities for on-campus crimes, violence and drug dealing by unauthorized outsiders.

Key Components — Schools using identification cards issue them to students and staff at the beginning of the school year. Students, faculty and staff are required to display valid identification cards to enter the building. Usually color-coded to differentiate between student classes, and between faculty and staff, the cards are worn throughout the day by everyone in the school building. The visitor ID card is usually larger than any other, making it noticeable and distinctive from those worn by students and staff.

Visitors are issued temporary identification cards after showing a driver’s license and signing in as they enter the building. Signs at the main entrances notify visitors that identification is required to enter the school building. Each school using the identification system has a distinct card to reduce the likelihood that students or staff could enter without authorization.

Key partnerships — The superintendent and school board must authorize the use of an identification card system and agree to expend funds necessary to implement it. Parent organizations and students should be consulted and informed about the role identification cards are expected to play in the comprehensive security planning for school facilities. Extensive communication with staff, parents and students is necessary to ensure successful implementation of the policy.

Applying the Strategy — One part of a security enhancement plan should include procedures that require visitors and temporary maintenance workers check in and be escorted to their destination within the school. Costs assessed for lost cards should help minimize replacement costs. Other security measures include metal detectors, full-time presence of police officers in school buildings and closed campuses during lunch hours.

— Reproduced in part from the National Crime Prevention Council’s “350 Tested Strategies to Prevent Crime: A Resource for Municipal Agencies and Community Groups.”

This article originally appeared in the issue of .

Featured

  • Austin International School Library Renovation

    Established in 1999, the Education Design Showcase is a vehicle for showing off innovative — yet practical — solutions in planning, design, architecture, and construction. The Austin International School has been recognized with an EDS 2025 Grand Prize award in the category of Renovation.

  • K–12 Safety Trends Report Reveals Reliance on Training, Technology

    Wearable safety technology provider CENTEGIX recently released its 2025 School Safety Trends Report, according to a news release. The report is based on more than 265,000 incidents during the 2024–25 school year as reported through the CENTEGIX Safety Platform, used by more than 800 school districts across the U.S.

  • S4L Launches 2025 Facilities and Construction Brief Survey

    Spaces4Learning recently launched its 2025 Facilities and Construction Brief Survey, which gathers information on K–12 and higher education construction projects nationwide from the previous year. The data we get from you, our readers, forms an industry report offering an overview of current trends in school facilities.

  • Dallas ISD Debuts New Peabody Elementary School

    The Dallas Independent School District in Dallas, Texas, recently announced the completion of the new facility for George Peabody Elementary School, according to a news release. The district partnered with Pfluger Architects and REEDER Construction on the 70,807-square-foot replacement campus, which has the capacity for 550 students.

Digital Edition